Down&Out
by sojunari
Summary: Together they were never truly homeless. (Human!Castiel/OC) Set in Season 9. Click the link for a more thorough summary. Rated M in later Chapters, updates will be slow. Also read on snfanfiction(.)tumblr(.)com
1. Down&Out Summary

_Together they were never truly homeless._

Castiel meets Katherine Reed in a church not long after leaving the bunker. Katie, as she likes to be called, is surprised to learn that the gentle looking family man is homeless like herself. Cas, as he introduces himself, is a kind man; innocent, naive, and gentle. Katie can tell he hasn't been homeless for long, but she doesn't pry. Simply allows the handsome man to join her, having company is nice and there's safety in numbers. They become a little team; moving around together, looking for work, gathering food, finding shelter. Katie's been without a family, moving from shelter, to group home, to abandoned building for years until Cas comes into her life and suddenly she's got a _home_ again. But it doesn't have a roof, or four walls, or a door. It's five-foot-eleven-inches, has dark hair, and striking ocean blue eyes.


	2. Chapter 1: Topeka Blues

The Midwest gets cold in the winter and Kansas usually gets the blunt end of the icy season's temper. It's late November now, narrowing in on the holiday season and Topeka is bustling with people. Many brave the cold weather, bundled in their winter puffy winter coats, to go shopping. Stores are crowded with people getting holiday gifts and gathering the last of their provisions in preparation for the coming Thanksgiving holiday. Some of the herd coming from long distances to visit their families, others merely passing through on the way to their own holiday destinations. Their cars packed full with luggage and family members.

The gas station Katherine Reed stands inside of is not exempt from the throng of travelers. She stands in front of a rack of sunglasses, surrounded by rowdy young families and impatient gasoline customers, looking at her reflection on the rotating display stand. Her face free of makeup aside from the dollar store eyeliner rimming her weary eyes. Katherine admirers a pair of aviators, trying them on as she waits for a family of five to file out of the gas station. The husband and wife round up their three children, all between the ages of four and nine, and corral them toward the door, not noticing as Katherine falls in step behind them. Her fall jacket, much too light for the winter temperature outside, cram full of pilfered packaged food.

She splits from the group of five in the parking lot, booking it down the block. She stops in front the only thing she's got left to her name; a grey 1968 Chevrolet Nova SS coupe that once belonged to her father. Katherine hops into the driver's seat, immediately starting the engine and taking off down the street. She hates stealing, but a girl's gotta eat.

In another part of town the former angel Castiel huddles into his coat as he makes his way down the sidewalk. He's exhausted of this whole homeless thing. Getting ejected from Heaven? Fine. Becoming a human? Not ideal, but doable. Being asked to leave the bunker? Alright. Sleeping in homeless encampments? Tolerable, if not uncomfortable. But, freezing to death from lack for proper shelter from the elements? Not okay.

The former does his fair share of bouncing around. From homeless camps, to shelters, doing day labor for shit pay, eating food pantry donations. It's getting cold out now though, and his fellow vagrants become territorial of their camps and the shelters are becoming crowded for the winter. How some of these humans have survived this way for years, Castiel doesn't know. But he's also heard the stories of lone transients freezing to death and doesn't want that to become his fate as well.

In the meantime Katherine drops by a soup kitchen she's volunteered at a few times. Anyone could guess they don't only serve soup. It's almost four thirty in the afternoon, not long before the dinner time rush would file into the pantry. Tonight, she works there as a cook in exchange for measly pay and a free meal, but she doesn't mind. Katherine loves to cook, it reminds her of a time before everything was difficult. She hunches over the counter, mashing potatoes by hand, as she let's her mind transport itself to the days in her great-aunt's hole-in-the-wall restaurant a few towns over.

Katherine spends the entire evening recalling the golden days. Long after her shift is finished and the dinner rush is gone, she sits down with a food tray of her own and quietly enjoys her free meal over old memories. As she packs up and files out of the front door, there's a pantry staff member handing out pamphlets at the entrance, warning of the drop in temperature to come after eight pm. He passes a pamphlet into Katherine's hands and she reads over the contents as she trudges toward her Nova. She climbs into the cold vehicle and starts it, reading over the address of this week's winter shelter location, before shifting the car into drive and taking off in the fading daylight toward the address listed for that date.

That evening after eating dinner at a nearby shelter, Castiel goes to the church he likes to frequent. He'd gone there the day Dean asked him to leave and sat for hours, after that he'd continued coming back. There are two,very devout, very kind older ladies who are there whenever he comes and greet him without fail every time. After his third time there, they'd learned of his situation after he'd asked the pastor about nearby shelters. Their opinion seemingly remains the same, every few days when he visits the church they still greet him brightly, without judgement. That night they are there again, greeting other church goers who are present to attend the evening sermon.

The elder of the two women, clasps his hands as he enters the church. "Cas, how have you been?" She questions cheerily. Castiel hadn't told them his true name, but he didn't like having to lie either, so he chose to use his nickname instead. "Very good, Mrs. Corbett, and yourself?" He answers, following as she leads him toward the pews. He listens to the sweet old woman talk animatedly about her week before they settle in for the evening sermon.

An aisle over from where he's seated, he spots a new face. A petite young woman, with long brown hair, dressed in a jacket that isn't quite warm enough for the weather. She's pretty, Castiel observes, as she listens to the Pastor preaching. He doesn't mean to, but he ends up watching her the entire sermon. Nearly jumping in surprise when younger of the two women, Mrs. Kelsh, touches his shoulder. "Did you find somewhere to stay for the evening, Cas? It's going to be very cold tonight." The former angel smiles down at the nice woman, "I was going to go to a shelter this evening." She shakes her head, passing a pamphlet into his hands that reads Interfaith Emergency Winter Shelters of Kansas on the front.

He reads it over carefully. The pamphlet advertises a winter shelter held in various churches every night of the week. The list is organized by city. Castiel skims over the details until he reaches Topeka, where there are two columns. One being days of the week, the second being the location of that day's shelter, which are held in different churches every night. He reads the paragraph in the margin where the open and closing dates and times are listed. "The shelter's being held here tonight, why don't you stick around? It doesn't actually open until nine, but I'm sure the volunteers could use the help."

The girl from earlier remains seated as all the church goers slowly file out the door. Some of them going home, some retreating to the attached church community center for warm beverages and conversation. Castiel notes the bag at her feet, tucked part of the way beneath the pew she's seated on. In her hands, she clutches a copy of the same pamphlet Mrs. Kelsh had given him. These two observations are enough for the former angel to assume they share the same predicament.

Castiel cautiously approaches her, having learned the hard way that some transients, though not all, could be a bit hostile. "Are you here for the shelter as well?" he questions in a small voice, still gravelly, but almost timid. The woman turns toward him, nodding as she stands, taking a moment to observe him.

Katherine looks over the man who'd approached her. He's tall, almost six foot, though not quite. He's got dark hair, that is the slightest bit tousled, an attractive stubble, and these stunningly blue eyes. He's dressed in a number of layers; a hoodie, a tee shirt, button down, hoodie, and a jacket, as well as a pair of dark jeans and black boots. There's a bag bag, a backpack, held one hand and a pamphlet in the other. He's very handsome, she concludes. And homeless like herself, but a part of her can tell that he hasn't been for very long.

Castiel observes her simultaneously. He can see now that she's standing that she's petite. Considerably smaller than him, approximately five foot four, perhaps? Her dark brown hair halls over her shoulders almost to the middle of her back and her eyes are a hazel color that remind him a bit of Sam's. She's dressed too lightly for the weather, in a crew neck sweater, a military green jacket, jeans, and ankle boots.

"Yeah, they gave me a pamphlet at the soup kitchen and I decided to drop by. It's getting too cold to sleep in my car." Katherine explains, though she knows she needn't do so. Something about this guy is so warm and welcoming, especially the way the corners of his eyes crease as he nods, almost smiling. "I too received one, from one of the church goers, Mrs. Kelsh. The shelters are becoming increasingly crowded, perhaps these emergency shelters will be more comfortable." He tells her, his voice is deep, like gravel. It adds to his appeal immensely.

"Name's Katherine Reed," She tells him, extending her hand toward him, "But, I prefer Katie." The former angel mirrors her action, his fingers gliding along her palm and closing around it in a handshake. " _I'm Cas_."


	3. Chapter 2: Skeletons

In the morning Katie wakes up, groggily, to the sound of bustling. She sits up and glances around the room. The lights are still off, but the gentle early morning light filters through the windows enough for her to see. Many of the homeless folk who'd come to the Winter Shelter that evening are still asleep, but a number of them are already awake, gathering their belongings and leaving as closing hours narrowed in. She notes the folded blanket on the cot parallel from her's, _Cas_ having already left.

Katie sits up as well, picking up her bag and folding up the blanket, leaving it neatly placed atop the cot. As she heads down the front steps of the church, into the freezing morning chill, she thanks a priest and one of the volunteers. Climbing into her treasured Nova, she turns on the engine and waits for the car to heat up. Katie wonders what she should do for the day. Day labor or kitchen work, what will provide better pay? She maneuvers her car out of the street-side parallel parking spot and starts down the road.

The petite brunette stops by a local truck stop for a shower, lugging her laundry duffle out of the trunk before going inside. This particular establishment is off a ways from the interstate, so more locals and farmers frequent it than actual semi-truck drivers. It's cleaner, the employees are friendlier, and fewer sleazy truckers visit the place than the other two _'travel stops'_ that lie immediately off the main highway. It's owned by a local family, not a chain businesses like the others. The restaurant is a Topeka one-and-only, not some common fast-food dive like most truck stops have. The deli food is actually cooked in their kitchen, by their cooks, and the price of their gas is the cheapest in town. All in all, it's probably one of Katie's favorite places.

She's there early enough that the showers are mostly empty, thankfully. She pays the six dollar fee and the woman at the fuel desk gives her the key to her favorite shower, because Katie's a regular and she'd come to know her well enough in the time she'd been coming there. Katie unlocks the door to shower number five, one she'd discovered to be a bit larger than the others. The room is similar to what you'd see in a hotel bathroom, it has a stand-up shower, a toilet, a sink, and a towel rack on the wall. You can get towels from the front desk, but Katie doesn't trust those, she brings her own.

Over the years she'd gotten over the suspicious stains or uncomfortable grime in public bathrooms and truck stops showers. After all, you make due with what you can get when you have nothing. The number one reason she began frequenting this truck stop is the cleaner showers than their competitors, but every so often that place too can be disappointing. The phrase _'beggars can't be choosers'_ comes to mind as she flips on the hot water and strips out of yesterday's dirty clothes. Katie stands under the sweltering stream of water and diligently washes down her skin and hair. She doesn't have the luxury to worry about looking fashionable, but she tries her damnedest to look presentable.

All of her clothes are things she'd collected over the years. Some are things she's had since she was sixteen, when she'd first become homeless after her mother's death. Those things were mostly alumni sweaters from her high school and jackets that been over sized on her teenage body. Fifteen years had passed since then and she'd grown into them, just like the hand-me-downs she'd gotten in group homes, and the freebies she'd received at shelters.

The weather's freezing out that day, coldest it'd been so far that winter, so Katie dons a flannel shirt and a knit sweater, along with her dark colored jeans, her socks and her same ankle boots. She marches herself upstairs, hair still wet and parks herself in the tiny truck stop laundry room. She spends a good hour in there as her dirty clothes make there rounds through the washer and dryer. She gives her hair the time to dry as she reads through the local paper, folds her now-clean clothes, and debates with herself over what the hell to do that day.

She decides upon the soup kitchen. Considering the weather the day labor work will probably be limited, and she knows that today will be among the shelters' busiest days, they could use the help. The soup kitchen doesn't pay any, but she gets free food and the work keeps her busy. She cooks, and serves, and cleans straight through her lunch break, snacking on cafeteria french fries between shift changes. By seven-thirty that evening Katie is entirely tired out, as she sits down in the shelter's dining room and shovels stew into her mouth by the spoonful. Stuffed and ready to brave the cold, the petite brunette digs the pamphlet out of her coat and looks up the next Interfaith Emergency Winter Shelter location.

As she makes her way through the poorly lit parking lot, she spots two suspicious figures huddled around the driver's side of her Nova. "Hey!" Katie calls, stomping toward the men, who are clearly attempting to break into her car. She's small, but every inch of her is spitfire. She launches right into argument with the two men, who aren't the slightest bit intimidated. Years of living on the street and fending for herself has hardened her, but also perhaps made her quick to react without fully observing the situation. She doesn't even notice a third man, who'd been a look out, approaching her.

It's a good thing for Katie's sake, that a dark haired, blue eyed man happens to be coming out of the shelter right about the same time. At first Castiel thinks better than to get tangled up in other people's business, he's human now after all. He's begun to learn to pick his battles. But, then he sees the small woman cornered between three men and a car, and he decides he'll pick his battles another day.

"You should learn to mind your own business, lady." One of the men says. He's clearly homeless as well, he's got that look of not having bathed in a while and his teeth are yellowed. "Someone breaking into my car is my business, pal." She answers, annoyance clear on her face. One of the men laughs, leaning close, and Katie turns her head away from him. His breath reeks, both from a lack of dental hygiene and from having recently consumed alcohol.

She sizes each of them up, looking them over, trying to determine their strength and just how drunk they are. All of them seem to have been drinking. She curses inwardly, thinking on the pocket knife she'd accidentally tucked into her duffle that morning instead of her coat pocket. The duffle which is now locked in her trunk. She could have taken them, she thinks, with her pocket knife. Two of them at least, the third one, the look out, was tall. Considerably larger than her, compared to his two buddies, and she isn't sure how to handle the situation. Call for help? Fight? Negotiate?

Thankfully Katie doesn't have to decide for herself, as someone comes out of the shelter and heads straight for them. "Is everything alright over there?" questions the newcomer. She recognizes that voice, she thinks, as one of the men answers that everything is fine and tells the man to move along. She peeks her head between them trying to get a glimpse at the new addition.

Standing a few feet from them is the man from the night before, _Cas_ , if she recalls correctly. He's got the same tousled hair and pretty blue eyes, but his expression is more troubled. "Cas?" Katie tries. He seems to stand straighter at this, looking around the three men and spotting the petite girl from the emergency shelter. _Katie_ , she'd said.

"Friend of yours?" The man standing closest to her asks. She doesn't him with a reply, but she doesn't need to. Castiel begins to make his way over, matching the height of the third man as he stands beside him. "Are these men bothering you?" he questions and she nods.

"Look buddy," the second man starts, "Just be about your business." The way he says it isn't harsh, but he conveys a promise of violence with the switchblade he draws. Cas' face remains neutral, but Katie is the one that makes the first move. No longer outnumbered and seeing an opening, she abandons her worries of being over powered and smashes her elbow into the closets man's face.

It's all in an instant, the first man clutching his bleeding nose, the second man going for Katie with his knife. Cas has him before either of them can realize, twisting the man's arm with one hand until he drops knife and catching it as it falls with the other. As the second man crumples onto one knee, the third makes his move. He's big, nearly the same height as Castiel, but not nearly as quick. Cas dodges the man's first punch and uses the momentum of his second to take him down as well. With the switchblade to the third man's throat, the angel stands victorious. He snaps closed the knife, tossing it across the parking lot and releasing the man, before speaking. "I think you three should be going."

As her assailants gather there wounded pride and shuffle out of the parking lot, Castiel comes to stand beside her. He notices her outfit is different than the day before and that her eyes seem more tired. "Thank you," Katie offers, and he nods in response. "I'd been going to find shelter for the night when I happened upon you." He explains and she with holds her giggle. Sometimes his speech pattern is so formal, but she finds it endearing. "Well, I'm glad you did." She tells him, looking him over and reaching out and touching his arm, in a gesture that surprises him. "Are you okay?" She's worried he may have been cut and is right to be. His fingers are bleeding, from catching the knife. "I'm alright." she's thankful it's just a minor cut, nothing Neosporin and a bandaid wouldn't be able to fix. "You didn't happen to be heading to the emergency center did you?"

Katie gives him a ride to the shelter, after all they'd been heading to the same place and he'd saved her ass from getting mugged... or worse. So they ride together in comfortable silence. The radio is on some soft classic rock channel, but they don't talk. Riding in her classic American muscle car listening to some random 80's rock song takes Castiel reeling back to his time with the Winchesters. For a moment he's nearly overcome with nostalgia. But, they aren't flying down some backwater highway in the middle of nowhere, they're cruising down a main drag off of well populated Topeka, Kansas. There's no Dean in the driver seat belting out the lyrics and there's no Sam there complaining about his brother's singing.

They pull to a stop in front of the church that is hosting the Interfaith Emergency Winter Shelter that night. Cas nearly jerks out of his reverie, blinking out the window at the people walking by. He and Katie enter the church together, each lugging backpacks, and he follows her over to one of the pews. Once seated, his companion pulls a compact first aid kit out the front pocket of her backpack. "That isn't necessary." He tries to offer, but the young woman will have none of it.

"You know what is most dangerous to those of us who live out there in the elements?" She asks rhetorically as she pours some hydrogen peroxide onto a cotton ball and begins dabbing it onto his cuts. "Infection."

Castiel watches her pull out a white and yellow tube, reading _Original Ointment NEOSPORIN_ in jade green font on it. She applies it to his cuts as well, while she continues speaking. "Most people think the biggest issue homeless people have is finding food. But, that not so true here in the city, there are a number of shelters and soup kitchens to find food for free or inexchange for volunteering. The biggest risks of living in the gutter are dehydration and infection. People always underestimate how important drinking water is. Especially when all you have is a hand full of change and it's either a bottle of water or a bag of chips." Castiel recalls the night at the laundry mat when he'd first become human. That night he'd chosen water and abandoned Jimmy's trenchcoat. He misses time to time, especially in this weather.

"And, getting injuries, even simple ones like this-" she gestures to his fingers as she applies the bandaids to his cuts. "- can get nasty if not given any attention. It's best not to let them get infected, even if you can only wash them with anti-bacteria/ soap and water." Castiel files these notes away for later, should he need them, "Thank you." he tells Katie, as she begins to pack away her first aid kit back into her backpack.

"You're welcome. You just seem like you're new to this." She says, an almost playful look on her face. He had to give it to her, she'd only met him those two times, but she had him down pat. "How did you know?" questioned the angel, but Katie just shook her head. "I've been at this for a long time, I'm good at weeding out the newcomers. Besides you've got that family man look about you, like you had something before this."

Castiel doesn't really want to talk about that, not with a stranger at least, but he doesn't know how to say it. Luckily, she doesn't want to talk about it either. "You don't have to say anything. We've all got out skeletons, pal." He decides in that moment that he's fond of this girl. If the Winchesters were here they would be too.

Before they both head off to where the cots are stationed, she stops him again, "But, really Cas, thank you for earlier." He smiles, quite genuinely, and tells her it was no trouble. Then the two of them go off to get some much needed sleep.

When Katie wakes the next morning, it's the same as the day before. Most people around her are still asleep, but Cas' cot is neatly made up and the handsome man is nowhere to be seen. She admits to herself she's a little disappointed, she's become a bit fond of the good looking, kind natured man.

As starts up the Nova and takes off down the road, once again heading in the direction of her favored truck stop. A few miles down the road she spots a familiar mess of dark hair, the same coat and red hoodie huddled to his form as Cas made his way down the road. Katie pulls up along side him, honking her horn as she comes to a stop.

Castiel recognizes the car as hers and approaches as she leans across to roll down the window. "So I've been thinking," says the brunette as he leans down to hear what she has to say. "Maybe you and I could, I don't know, stick together?" She looks flustered and he can tell it's definitely not something she would normally do. "It's just that you seem trust worthy and there's safety in numbers, ya know?" She's rambling, but Castiel is happy regardless. "I'd like that." He tells her, and with a sigh of relief Katie opens up the passenger door and he climbs in.


End file.
